Writers are often asked where we come up with our plots—the answer is often found in the news. The plot for Dangerous Christmas Memories originated in an article I read about a celebrity couple who didn’t realize their Vegas wedding had, in fact, been years. As in 20 years! That’s a long time to not realize you have a spouse.
Here’s the real news that inspired my romantic suspense novel: In 1991, stand-up comedian Janeane Garofalo discovered that she had actually married TV producer Rob Cohen in Las Vegas. According to a 2012 Forbes article, the pair had been dating and visited Vegas, where, after a few drinks, they got married in a drive-through wedding chapel. Because it was Vegas, neither one thought the wedding was “real.”
The Forbes article quoted family attorney David Crosson as saying, “Vegas weddings are no joke. [People] absolutely … stay married without knowing it.” For Cohen and Garofalo, their marriage was discovered when Cohen wanted to marry for real and his lawyers uncovered the previous nuptials. The pair dissolved the union and went on their separate ways.
When I read about their “forgotten” Vegas wedding, I immediately thought, “I can use that in a plot!” In Dangerous Christmas Memories, my heroine has forgotten she was married until my hero shows up on her doorstep.
What’s been fascinating to me is how many people tell me that wouldn’t happen in real life, that no one would “forget” they were married. But as Cohen-Garofalo showed us, things that seem strange do actually happen in real life.
That’s what makes writing so fun—we take a snippet of truth and ask, “What if?” For me, I wondered what if the woman had no memory of getting married and was running for her life when the hero came back into her life? The element of danger heightened their reunion and allowed them both to explore why they married so quickly—and what they would do about now.
So the next time you read a book, don’t be too quick to think, “That could never happen in real life.” Chances are, it really could!
Sarah Hamaker has been spinning stories since she was a child. Her stories have appeared in several Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Her Christmas romantic suspense novella, Mistletoe & Murder, is out now. Her romantic suspense novel, Dangerous Christmas Memories, came out in November 2019. She also won the 2015 American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Award for romantic suspense. Sarah is a member of ACFW and the ACFW Virginia Chapter, as well as the president of Capital Christian Writers Fellowship. Sarah lives in Virginia with her husband, four children, and three cats. Connect with her at sarahhamakerfiction.com.
A witness in jeopardy…and a killer on the loose.
Hiding in witness protection is the only option for Priscilla Anderson after witnessing a murder. Then Lucas Langsdale shows up claiming to be her husband right when a hit man finds her. With partial amnesia, she has no memory of her marriage or the killer’s identity. Yet she will have to put her faith in Luc if they both want to live to see another day.
Get the book here: Amazon